by Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY Sports

by Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY Sports

With teams bunkered down in draft preparations, it has gotten relatively quiet in the NFL marketplace. But there was one key move late last week that resonated as it cemented another brick in the foundation for one of the league's strongest operations.

The San Francisco 49ers extended the contract of Anthony Davis on Friday, locking up the right tackle for arguably the NFL's best offensive line through 2019. On one level, it was a peace-of-mind move consistent with the philosophy executed by general manager Trent Baalke of securing key parts for the long haul. Davis, who has started all 53 games (including postseason) since being selected 11th overall from Rutgers in 2010, is the fourth 49ers first-round pick who has been extended well before they could hit the market as free agents, in step with tight end Vernon Davis (Class of 2006), linebacker Patrick Willis (2007) and left tackle Joe Staley (also 2007).

Last year, the Niners also tied up inside linebacker Navarro Bowman through 2019. Running back Frank Gore landed a three-year extension prior to the 2011 season. It may be more than coincidence that Bowman, Gore and Davis, who averages $7.46 million on his new deal, are both represented by Drew Rosenhaus, who has the track record of being a willing dance partner for extending key non-quarterbacks (see Rob Gronkowski) well before the so-called "contract" year.

In any event, if they can find more room under the $123 million salary cap, there are at least two other homegrown first-round picks whom the 49ers would be wise to extend - receiver Michael Crabtree (2009) and all-pro guard Mike Iupati (2010) - in addition to defensive lineman Justin Smith.

It all speaks to the type of shrewd cap management that can allow a team to stay formidable - with core players locked in - in this environment of NFL economics.

Having a league-high 13 picks in the upcoming draft helps, too.

The 49ers have followed their Super Bowl ascent with some deft maneuvers this offseason. They shifted backup quarterback Alex Smith's $9.75 million cap figure off the books by dealing him to the Kansas City Chiefs before filling the slot by obtaining Colt McCoy and his $762,750 cap figure from the Cleveland Browns. San Francisco got cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha for cheap, with a $1.35 million base salary and the chance for him to rebound with one of the league's best defenses. They lost nose tackle Isaac Sopoaga (who counted $4.949 million against the cap in 2012), then added defensive end Glenn Dorsey for a $2.21 million hit. Wideout Anquan Boldin has a $7.531 million cap figure, but he's a proven, big-time playmaker. And by not keeping safety Dashon Goldson - who had a $6.212 million hit in 2012 under the franchise tag and averages $8.25 million on his new deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers - the 49ers can try to fill the void with the deep safety crop in the draft and/or the out-of-work veterans on the market.

All that, and the 49ers have something else working for them: They are also cashing in with the good fortune that came with the rookie wage scale instituted with the new collective bargaining agreement in 2011. By striking gold with quarterback Colin Kaepernick, a second-round pick in 2011, the 49ers are in the midst of a virtual rookie cap honeymoon. Under terms of the new rookie scale, Kaepernick can't get another contract until after this season, allowing for a huge advantage as the 49ers tie up pieces around him. Kaepernick, 25, one of the the youngest QBs to start a Super Bowl, counts just $1.398 million against the cap - a scant 1.1% slice.

By comparison, two-time Super Bowl winner Eli Manning, with a $20.85 million cap figure, accounts for 17% of the New York Giants' budget.

With 11 NFL teams - basically one-third of the league - starting quarterbacks who are playing under rookie wage scale deals, it has become an intriguing component on the marketplace. Some of the biggest spenders in free agency are rolling with the windfall, employing relatively cheap labor at the game's most important position. Check out these cap figures for some of the passers who have entered the NFL since 2011:

Brandon Weeden, Cleveland: $1.837 million (1.5% of the Browns' cap)

Ryan Tannehill, Miami Dolphins: $2.879 million (2.3%)

Jake Locker, Tennessee Titans: $3.433 million (2.8%)

Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks: $681,085 (0.6%)

These 11 quarterbacks combine for a total of $33.525 million in cap dollars, with an average hit of $3.05 million that represents 2.5% of the cap.

For $33 million in cap dollars, you couldn't afford Eli and Peyton Manning ($40.85 million). Nor could you fit the three Matts - Stafford ($20.32 million), Ryan ($12 million) and Schaub ($10.75 million) - into that window.

While the rookie wage scale was developed on the premise that the huge sums paid to unproven players should be better funneled to veterans, it has undoubtedly offered a great opportunity for teams who - by draft-position luck, aggressive market moves (see Washington Redskins, trading up for Robert Griffin III and his $4.8 million cap figure) or deft talent evaluation (Kaepernick, Wilson) - can squeeze out a few years from these budding talents while building around them.

Even stars in the making drafted No. 1 overall offer the edge. Cam Newton (No. 1 pick in 2011) heads into Year 3 with a modest $6.007 million cap figure, while Andrew Luck (No. 1 in 2012) carries a $5.025 million tag. The quarterback drafted No. 1 overall before the rookie wage scale came? Sam Bradford, the St. Louis Rams' pick in 2010, is living with a six-year, $78 million contract that guaranteed him a rookie-record $50 million. Stafford got the same overall deal as Bradford, though his guarantees came in at less than $42 million. Regardless, timing matters.

Of course if the wage-scale quarterbacks blossom into stars, the leverage will swing and the teams - like the 49ers, with Kaepernick - will eventually be forced to pay up.

Tony Romo's new deal with the Dallas Cowboys includes cap figures of $27.773 million next year, then $25.273 million in 2015. Joe Flacco's new contract with the Baltimore Ravens has a cap number of $6.8 million this year, then escalates accordingly: $14.8 million, $14.55 million, $28.55 million, $31.15 million and $24.75 million, provided he doesn't restructure down the line.

Kaepernick is among the marquee faces for the new-wave quarterbacks in the NFL, like Newton, RGIII, Luck and Wilson. Keep it up, and their cap-heavy pay day will get here.

Until then, the 49ers have quite the grace period to work their cap magic.